Griffins general manager Bob McNamara has been staple of organization since it began

View full sizeKaty Batdorff | The Grand Rapids PressBob McNamara, 49, is beginning his 15th season as general manager of the Grand Rapids Griffins. He was hired on Jan. 26, 1996, before there were any players or coaches, before any tickets had been sold, before Van Andel Arena even had been built.

GRAND RAPIDS -- In another lifetime, Bob McNamara might have been a professional golfer.

These days, he's about a 12 handicap -- although he has been lower in the past -- but whenever he daydreams about what could have been, his wife simply laughs at him.

Good thing he has a steady day job.

McNamara, 49, is beginning his 15th season as general manager of the Grand Rapids Griffins. He was hired on Jan. 26, 1996, before there were any players or coaches, before any tickets had been sold, before Van Andel Arena even had been built.

He has been a staple of the franchise from its first player signing, Todd Nelson, to its most recent, Greg Amadio. He has successfully helped the Griffins switch leagues -- from the International Hockey League to the American Hockey League -- and NHL affiliates -- from Ottawa to Detroit.

During his tenure, the Griffins have won division titles, conference titles and finished with the best regular-season record. His teams have missed the playoffs only four times. He won the 1997 IHL General Manager of the Year award.

But it's obvious he would trade all of those accolades to bring the Griffins their first hockey championship.

Q: The McNamara name is well known in hockey circles -- father Gerry had a short playing stint with the Toronto Maple Leafs, and was their GM from 1982-87; brother Dave is a scout for the Pittsburgh Penguins -- so how did the game influence you growing up?

A: It was pretty much everything we did. When we were growing up, my dad still played in the Ontario Senior League so we used to go and see him play. Growing up in our house, we couldn't wait for Saturday nights. My mom would drop us off at the subway and my brothers and I would take it down to Leafs games. We grew up in Maple Leaf Garden going to see games. Sometimes our dad would take us to practices, hockey was just around all the time. And we all played.

We had some great games in the street, got a little ugly at times, but it was all hockey all the time. It was great, and you don't appreciate what you have in terms of access to the Leafs and practices until you get older, and then you remember those things.

BY THE NUMBERS

5: Division titles in the past 11 seasons, tied for the most in the AHL

8: Coaches during his tenure -- including himself

15: Seasons as Griffins general manager

45-47: Griffins' postseason record

110: Griffins who have gone on to play in the NHL

591-414-125: Regular-season record during his tenure

4,480,206: Griffins' all-time attendance

Q: So it's safe to say you were a Leafs fan?

A: Yes, true and true for a lot of years. Obviously, we won a (Stanley) Cup in '67, but I barely remember that. But my dad was real good friends with a lot of the guys on that team, and we knew some of the players, but it was pretty tough over the years. They just never won a Cup.

Q: How would you describe playing as a youth?

A: When you're younger, you just play. You don't concern yourself with anything, no consequences. You just go out and play, and that's the easiest way to play. I think that as players get older and as they get to the college level and the pro level, that's what separates the guys that make it from the guys that don't. It's the guys that are tough enough to handle the ups and the downs, and when you're younger you just go out and have fun.Q: How did you end up at Notre Dame?

A: My high school coach put the idea in place that he was going to have his players go to college. We went there because we wanted to try and get college scholarships. That's what the program was designed to do. I had an opportunity to go to the (Ontario Hockey League) but it was never even considered. My dad understood that this is a means to getting an education, and once you have your education, take a shot at pro. If you don't make it, you fall back on your education.

Q: How are your sons -- Jake and Daniel -- as hockey players?

A: They grew up at Van Andel Arena. My youngest, Jake, is 14 now, and
all he knows is coming down to the arena, going into the locker room,
meeting the guys. He’ll come to games with me. They love hockey.

Daniel
is 17 now and he’s playing in the USHL in Waterloo. He got drafted this
summer, so he’s living in Iowa. Jake is going to live in Detroit this
year and play midget minor AAA for Victory Honda.

They grew up with
it, it’s what they wanted to do and hopefully it will help them get an
education. If they have an opportunity to play (professionally), that’s
great.

They’re passionate about it and that’s the biggest thing.
Many times, when kids get older they lose the passion. They’d like to
play, but they really don’t want to put in the extra work that separates
the players that get opportunities. So far, they’ve been excited and
it’s fun to watch your kids play hockey.

And my daughter, Alix, is
majoring in criminology at Western Michigan. She wants to go to law
school in Washington and work for the government.

Q: You don't have any problem with them leaving the nest?

A: It's tough, but it's part of the process. I think because of where we are geographically, it's unfortunate that there's not a real strong program to compete in the Tier 1 AAA league, which now is all across the country. Grand Rapids is in the middle of the Detroit teams and the Chicago teams. Last year, Daniel had to go play in Chicago and live with a family there, and that was tough because that was our first one that lived away from home. But he did real well with it, and we kind of got used to it. Then the youngest one saw that and he was like, "I want to go play in that league, too." It's tough to watch them go, but at the same time, it's a great experience for them. They really grow up as people. They learn to travel, they learn to take care of their hotel bills, they learn to do a lot of things that make them more independent and stronger.

Q: Describe the first days and months as GM, when you didn't have a coach or any players.

A: You know, I was just thinking about that today because I got dropped off over at the Amway Grand and I lived there for two months when I first got hired. I was walking through there just thinking, "There are a few people still here that I remember." As I walked upstairs, I remembered the season ticket party, the seat selection party that was an absolute zoo in the big, huge ballroom where people were waiting in line. Those years were crazy in terms of people who were just so fanatical about the team.

Once I got here, I spent a lot of time on the road, traveling, looking at teams and trying to assemble a list of free agents. Obviously, back in those days we weren't affiliated yet, so you had to put the team together on your own. It was an exciting time, it was a crazy time. The city was so excited about the team. We'd come over here and watch (Van Andel Arena) go up, and walk through, designing the offices and the locker room. There was just a real buzz in the city about the team and we couldn't wait for the puck to drop.

Q: How have you grown as a general manager over the years?

A: I think that the job has evolved somewhat going from the IHL to the AHL, and working as an independent as opposed to working with NHL teams and piecing together teams. Those first years, it was pretty much myself and the coaches sitting down, trying to figure out the type of team we wanted, how we wanted to play and then we'd go out and find the guys. You develop relationships with agents, and they're a big part of getting you the players.

Then, as we moved into the era of affiliation with Ottawa, it changed a little bit because then you had to kind of work with them in terms of who they were drafting, the types of prospects that would be on your team, then you had to fill the holes with guys that would complement the players they would send to you. The relationship with Ottawa was fantastic and there's no doubt in my mind that it would still be going had the Red Wings thing not come up. But the Red Wings came up and it made so much sense to us, geographically and, obviously, this is a big Red Wings outpost here. The opportunity to see players skate here one night and skate in Detroit the next night was so important for us. That's been a fantastic relationship, too.Q: What accomplishment are you most proud of in your time here?

A: The perception of the organization throughout professional hockey, that we've been able to build it into a program where people want to be able to play here, people want to come back here and play because of the experiences they've had. You want to create something that's special, something that's a little out of the ordinary in terms of the run-of-the-mill franchises that are out there. We think that we have a special situation here based on our ownership, based on Grand Rapids. You don't realize what a special place Grand Rapids is until you've lived here. When I moved here, I had an uncle and an aunt who lived here and some cousins, but all I knew about Grand Rapids was that I had relatives here. Once you're here for a short period of time, you realize this is a special place.

Q: Conversely, what's your biggest regret?

A: Well, not winning a championship. I mean that's the biggest thing. We've come close over the years. We went to the finals against Chicago one year (in 2000), and we just didn't get it done. We had the one year where we lost to Orlando in the conference finals (in 2001). That was a team that I thought could have and should have won a championship. We probably were the more talented team, but they played better as a team than us in that series. I think the other team that we had that probably could have won was the (2003) team that lost to Houston in the conference finals in Game 7. I think that team was good enough to win a championship, and for whatever reason it just didn't come together.

Q: Have you ever had to worry about losing your job?

A: It's something you always worry about when you don't win a championship. I think when you have a losing season, when you miss the playoffs, when you lose in the first round, I think it's always something in the back of your mind. I mean, you're responsible. At the end of the day, if they're going to make a change, you get that and you understand it. In this profession and in this position, it's something you think about on a frequent basis. But you can't let it get in the way of what you do. You've got to continue to have your eyes ahead and you've got to continue to work harder every day. For me, I think that the day you wake up and think you have it figured out is the day that everyone starts passing you by. You've got to understand you don't have all the answers.

Q: Fifteen years in one place is a long time in the sports world. Have you ever considered leaving?

A: There have been some things that have come up over the years, in terms of the National Hockey League. I think we'd all love to work in the NHL, but I think it's got to be the right situation. This is a pretty good spot to be. Yeah, I think if it's the right situation, I'd love to get to the NHL. But I do recognize that this is the best place to be outside of the NHL. There's not a better city, there's not a better group of owners and I don't think there's a better group of fans out there. This is great, I just want to win a championship here. Whatever happens down the road, hopefully an opportunity will come up somewhere along the way that makes sense.

Q: So you've had offers?

A: I wouldn't say I've had offers. I guess I would say there were some things that came up that could have happened or may have happened that didn't pan out. For whatever reason, the chips didn't fall the way I thought they were going to fall, but that's OK. Like I said, this is a great place to be.

Q: Who have been some of your favorite players to come through?

A: Boy, that's a really tough one because I know I'm going to slight somebody. Obviously, Travis Richards comes to mind. Todd Nelson, the first player we signed. Those guys were fantastic. Michel Picard was one of the best. Ryan Oulahen, Matt Ellis, these are guys that are just salt of the earth guys. You'd be proud to call them your kids. Justin Abdelkader, same mold. Derek King was fantastic. There are a lot of guys, and I know I'm forgetting guys. Joey MacDonald who's coming back, same type of situation. You're kind of partial to the first year and first teams, and Travis is still in the area and I consider him to be a close friend. There have been some tremendous people over the years, and I know that I'm slighting some of them.

Q: Who do you think has been the best player to come through?

A: Probably the one that has had the best career is Pavol Demitra. There have been some pretty good ones. Valtteri Filppula, Jiri Hudler, Niklas Kronwall. Of the newer guys we've had, those guys would probably be the best.

Q: What would you have done if you weren't working in hockey?

A: Wow. (Laughing.) I probably would be working in business somewhere. I have a degree from Notre Dame in economics and I probably would have found my way into business somewhere down the line. I always liked advertising, I always kind of enjoyed the fact that you can be creative but you can also see tangible results from your work. Something along those lines.

Q: People always love to talk about Grand Rapids one day getting an NHL team. Do you think the city could support one?

A: I think that's a really, really tough road to go down just because of the size of the market. I don't know that it's big enough to handle an NHL team. And I say this because of the cost of tickets. The price of our tickets is one thing, but if you're now bringing in an NHL team into the market, and you've got a $52 to $55 million salary cap you've got to start charging $75 minimum, maybe $50, for nosebleeds. You're looking at $200 for seats down below. You'd have to expand the arena to about 18,000, and you've got to fill it on a nightly basis. It's an expensive sport.